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Buffalo Grove Arts and Culture

The Arts in Buffalo Grove

Buffalo Grove has a rich arts and culture scene, with everything from fine art shows to live musical performances.

Adding to the rich fabric of the community, these events bring people of all ages together to enjoy entertainment both outdoors and inside as well. Summertime finds residents camped out on lawn chairs and blankets, listening to music under the stars and enjoying food “Ravinia-style,” and local theatre helps keep the artistic spirit alive and well all year long.

One of the major events in the village each year is the Buffalo Grove Invitational Fine Art Festival, which celebrates its sixth year in 2008. Held mid-July, the festival showcases the work of approximately 150 juried artists from the United States and beyond, and the weekend typically draws over 30,000 visitors. Held in Buffalo Grove Town Center, there is always food and entertainment in addition to the art that is on display.

The Rotary Village Green Concert Series offers the community a variety of music every Thursday night from June through mid-August, and is also tied-in with the Fourth of July celebration. Music begins at 7 p.m. and includes many different types, such as classical, rock and music for youth. Concerts typically last from one to two hours and there is no charge to attend.

Lawn Chair Lyrics is another free concert series that runs from June until early August, featuring music such as country bands, jazz and ‘50s tunes, among many other styles. The series runs from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday evenings and is located at Willow Stream South at 651 Old Checker Road.

Children have entertainment geared specifically for them with the Tots in the Park program, offered from 10:30 to 11:15 a.m. throughout the month of July at The Alcott Center. Buffalo Grove Park District Recreation Supervisor Lori Bachrach says that the no-cost series is geared for those from three to eight years of age, and musicians, jugglers and other children’s entertainers are usually among those that are invited to perform.

Recently, Buffalo Grove was ranked by Business Week as one of the Top Fifty Best Places in the U.S. to raise kids. Deputy Village Manager Ghida Neukirch says, “Only seven Illinois communities made Business Week’s top 50. Overall, Buffalo Grove ranked number 30 on the list, and in the area of cultural arts and recreation, we were ranked as number one.”

Neukirch goes on to give an example and says, “We are so proud of the Village’s Buffalo Grove Symphonic Band. The band was started in 2001 and in this short amount of time, the band has grown to be one of the most respected and entertaining community bands in the Chicagoland area.”

With a variety of free concerts and two formal ones yearly, the band has performed both within the village and in other communities such as Mt. Prospect, Long Grove and Northbrook. Formal concerts are themed, such as “Movie and Dance Favorites,” which included music from West Side Story, Fiddler on the Roof, Schindler’s List, Lawrence of Arabia and How the West Was Won. Neukirch points out that “Each concert has music and entertainment for the entire family to enjoy.”

The BG Singers are a community chorus, with performance credits that include the “Arlington Million” and the “Walter Payton Foundation’s 5K Run.” The adult show choir of approximately 70 members has been around fifteen years and holds a themed concert each spring. Its offshoot traveling ensemble, Encore!, provides smaller venue performances throughout the Chicagoland area.

Children’s Theatre is another wonderful program offered through the park district. Two productions are put on each year—one in the fall and the other in winter.

Geared toward grades 3 through 10, it gives Buffalo Grove’s younger residents an opportunity to perform. Those ages 9 and up can also audition for the summer musical—the largest production of the year, usually held at Stevenson High School Performing Arts Center. Examples of past offerings include Kiss Me Kate, Beauty and the Beast and 42nd Street.

These are just some examples of what is going on in the village’s artistic community. There are plenty of things to enjoy for those who like watching a show or browsing art—and residents also have many opportunities to be involved in the performance scene directly. One thing is for sure; there is always something going on in the arts scene in Buffalo Grove.